Ash receptacle



Oct. 28, 1941.

TAP

g dLL v M/VENTOR J. CA P5544 receptacle.

Patented Oct. 28, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,260,507 ASH REOEPTACLE John Campbell, New York, N. Y. Application July 10, 1937, Serial No. 152,886

1 Claim. (cram-20.5)

The present invention relates to ash receptacles in which the discarded cigar or cigarette ends and other smokers discards drop out of sight.

An object is to provide an ash receptacle with a lower portion which is constantly covered but of which the cover readily swings about a pivot to permit passage of ashes, and discarded cigarettes, cigars, and tobacco into such lower portion.

A further object is to provide means whereby the cover of a lower enclosed portion of the ash receptacle is self-restoring to its covering position after it has been displaced by the passage of tobacco, cigar and cigarette stubs into such lower portion.

A further object is to combine an ash receptacle with a toy thereby enhancing its sales appeal without adding any additional structure or interfering with its function as an ash receptacle.

Still a further object is to provide an ash receptacle which is of simple and inexpensive construction and yetrugged and provided with a self-restoring cover hiding from sight discarded and partially smoked cigars and cigarettes and other smokers discards.

Still a further object is to provide an ash receptacle with cigar and cigarette supports and an interior covered chamber such that forgotten cigars or cigarettes on such supports either remain thereon or on being air smoked drop into said interior chamber and not off the receptacle onto table and desk tops, etc., thereby causing damage.

Still a further object is to provide an ash receptacle in which continuously sufficient circulating air is kept from discarded but still lit cigar or cigarette ends Within the receptacle resulting in insuflicient air to support their continued combustion and almost completely preventing objectionable smoke and odor from the Still further and other objects are obvious from the description of my preferred construc sectionalper housing 6 fits snugly onto the lower housing and may be readily removed as desired or required for cleaning and to afford a choice of shapes of lower housings. Its upper portion is provided with an integral rim 1 sloping downwardly toward the interior and center of the receptacle. In the construction shown, rim 1 is in the form of a truncated inverted cone with a dependent wall 8 of some height and positioned as hereinafter described. A spider, comprising a ring 9 adapted to fit snugly over wall 8 and one or more U-shaped members 4, the two arms of each of which are rigidly fast on ring 9, is supported from wall 8 by bending over the lowermost portion of the wall under ring 9. Rigidly connected to the midpoint of the horizontal portion of U-support 4, a vertical supporting shaft 3,. made of hard metal, such as drill rod, extends upwardly. A conic depression 5, the outside diameter of which is preferably greater than the diameter of shaft 3, is supported by the upper end of shaft. 3. The apex of the conic depression 5 is so situate that it is central of the wall 8 and at the height of ap-' proximately midway the height of wall 8. 0n

the rim I, and near its outer edge, a frame l0 carrying a plurality of conveniently spaced L-shaped cigar and cigarette carriers H is assembled thereto, although obviously such carriers may be directly affixed tothe upper edge of the rim. The carriers H are of such section that approximately but a line or knifeedge, rather than an area, contact is made with the cigar .or cigarette placed thereon and as to which the carrier acts like a fulcrum. Cigars or cigarettes are placed upon the receptacle across a carrier II and a portion of the upper edge of rim 1 so that the smokers article is supported near its lighted end by the carrier and with the axis of said article at approximately right ,angles to the length of the carrier. Substantially covering the circular opening formed by dependent Wall 8, a cover I2 is supported on shaft 3. Cover I2 is cone shaped, its base diameter being approximately that of the diameter of said opening, that is, a minimum of clearance in the covering position is provided. As shown,-

cover assembly is supported. Pivot l3 is of. such height within the conical cover l2 that the latters base diameter is approximately in the same plane as the midpoints of depending wall 8 when punched from its surface, for the purpose of I offering wind resistance to the spinning of the cover assembly I2. may be made of any material and of any convenient configuration, with its exposed surfaces Obviously housings I andfi -j' finished in any sales attractive manner. The

opening formed by dependent wall 8 is hQWeLve'r,

always circular, and the cover assembly I2 is preferably made of light material, such as alu- 1 minum, except the pivot I3 which is preferably ofa hard-metal, such as tool-steel or drill rod. The surface of rim '1 may conveniently be di- -vided into a series of divisions such as Tip 1, =Tap 2,. etc., .as indicated bythereference nu- 'meral I8. An arrow, or other indicator, I9, may

be applied to the cover I2 as shown. The zones and arrow constitute a convenientspinning toy, 'while ring I0 with itscarriers II is readily removableand may be replaced with other rings carryi'ng the indicia of various games.

H Inoperation it will be noted'that the ash receptacle can be readily disassembled into essentially three assemblies, the lower housing, the

upper-housing, and the cover I2. In this manner smokers refuse, gathered within the lower housing, may be removed, each assembly cleaned, 'and the ash receptacle reassembled. When a cigarette is placed upona carrier II, it will be noted that it is supported near one end, the lit end, by the carrier while the other end of the cigarette rests upon the outer edge portion of rim I. wardly, but not as much as rim I, if for any 'reason the lit end supported on carrier ll becomes weaker, or the cigarette changes in weight distribution, for example, by air smoking the cigarette, the lit end will fulcrum about the car- "rierjdrop therefrom'onto rim 1, and slide down As the supports II are inclined downthe latter. Cover I2 being, as above stated, of

- light material, will thereby be tilted so that there is sufficient clearance between dependent wall 8 and cover I2 for the cigarette to drop into lower housing I. Thusforgotten smoked cigars and cigarettes will'disappear from sight and the unsightly .a'ppearance thereof, particularly when there isan accumulation, avoided. It will be noted that the interior of the lower housing is -completelycovered by the upper housing walls 6', rim 1, and cover I2 fitting the opening in rim --'I with a minimum of clearance, as stated. On

accidentally upsetting my ash receptacle there is little likelihood that the contents thereof will be dumped out overdesks, rugs, etc. Also the entrapped air is limited in such interior, and still lit cigarslor cigarettes therein are soon snuffed out, and the smoke and odor is substantially Jconfined therein except for the short intervals when cover I2 is tipped by the passage to the "interior of smokers discards. the passageof such discarded material, cover I2 restoresiitselfto. its coveringflposition as the Immediately on weight distributionfthereof, aided by lower invertedcone I5, is such that the center of gravity of the cover assembly is axially below the point pivot I3. The conic depression 5 is of such subtended angle as compared to the acute angle of pivot I3 that the latter is always centered, and

if for any reason it should not be centered on assembly, it will center itself at the apex of depression 5. The cover assembly is thus self- -centering, tiltable and self-restoring, and, as is obvious, rotatable. The rotatable feature is employed to enhance the sales appeal of my ash receptacle by providing the indications I8 and I9, so that the receptacle may be used as a spinner for numerous well known amusement games. Due to the relative light weight of cover assembly I2, necessitated by the small mass of ashes, cigar and cigarette ends, to make an operative ash receptacle, the cover would rotate, on spinning projection [4, for a time perhaps longer than desirable in most amusement games. Hence I provide vanes I! to dampen such rotation, but

'theyare not wholly. based on the amusement feature of my ash'receptacle for they also serve the function of weighting the cover to depress its center of gravity. To permit the passage of rather large cigarette and cigar ends the cover is made tiltable to an appreciable angle of tilt by making opening I6 in the base of inverted cone I 5 as large as possible consistent with depressing the center. of gravity of the cover to produce the self-restoring feature above described. The cover may also be. tilted by tapping projection .I4-with.the fingers. So also, even though my ash receptacle be positioned on not truly horizontal surfaces, cover I2 will not permit smoke or odor to escape from the interior in appreciable amounts due to having the maximum diameter of cover I2, when it is truly horizontal, at about the .level of midway the heightof dependent wall -8,,and in that the axis of the cover always as- .sumes a, true vertical position due to pin pivot I3 even though support 3 may be slightly out of the true vertical position.

While I have described my preferred construction,,I limit myself only as set forth in the an- -nexed"-claim. Various modifications may be made in specific details-without'departing from my invention as defined in such claim. What I claim is: v An ash receptacle comprising a housing have in'gside Walls, a bottom, a top, an annular rim in said top inclined inwardly. and extending downwardly from said top a vertical distance and leaving a central opening, a support centrally of the bottom extending upwardly to the region of the lower portion of the annular rim, a flange tapering to a lowermost central point on said support, a closure in said central opening comprising a light weight conical. member of a height lessrthan 'said distance. and of a base disaid central opening and in substantiallyithe plane thereof and whose center of gravity is beameter closely approximating the diameter of low said flange and central of the support when the closure is in the closing position, andlacentral pivot extending downwardly from the'apex region of the closure and terminating in a point support cooperating with theflange'permitting tilting said closure and preventing the falling of the closure from said support'while providing maximum clearance between the annularrim and thesurface of the closure'on the tilting of the closure.

\ J OHN CAMPBELL. 

